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--- transportation:roads [2024/11/20 23:03] – [Articles] timb
+++ transportation:roads [2025/02/09 05:18] (current) – [Asphalt] timb
@@ Line 65: / Line 65: @@
 https://devonzuegel.com/the-road-to-hell-is-paved-with-asphalt
+== Farewell potholes? UK team invents self-healing road surface ==
+Researcher at Swansea University says tiny plant spores mixed into bitumen can extend surface lifespan by 30%
+Ian Sample, Science editor - Mon 3 Feb 2025 01.00 EST
+For all motorists, but perhaps the Ferrari-collecting rocker Rod Stewart in particular, it will be music to the ears: researchers have developed a road surface that heals when it cracks, preventing potholes without a need for human intervention.
+The international team devised a self-healing bitumen that mends cracks as they form by fusing the asphalt back together. In laboratory tests, pieces of the material repaired small fractures within an hour of them first appearing.
+“When you close the cracks you prevent potholes forming in the future and extend the lifespan of the road,” said Dr Jose Norambuena-Contreras, a researcher on the project at Swansea University. “We can extend the surface lifespan by 30%.”
+According to the AA, a record £579m was spent in the UK last year repairing vehicles damaged by potholes, up from £474m in 2023. After pledging £1.6bn to repair roads and fix more than 7m potholes in England this year, the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, said the hazards had “plagued motorists for far too long”.
+Potholes typically start from small surface cracks that form under the weight of traffic. These allow water to seep into the road surface, where it causes more damage through cycles of freezing and thawing. Bitumen, the sticky black substance used in asphalt, becomes susceptible to cracking when it hardens through oxidation.
+To make the self-healing bitumen, the researchers mixed in tiny porous plant spores soaked in recycled oils. When the road surface is compressed by passing traffic, it squeezes the spores, which release their oil into any nearby cracks. The oils soften the bitumen enough for it to flow and seal the cracks.
+https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/feb/03/farewell-potholes-uk-team-invents-self-healing-road-surface